Engagement Marketing: A Simple Three-Step Cycle

This keynote was more than a year in the making; it took Jon Taffer that long to line up small business expert and Chairman, President and CEO of Constant Contact, Gail Goodman to address the attendees at the recent 2014 Nightclub & Bar Convention and Trade Show. Jon introduced Gail by asking the standing-room-only auditorium, “Who’s here to shut down the competition?” The crowd answered with an emphatic round of applause and Gail took the stage to give everyone a cutting edge weapon for use in their fight against the competition.

“It turns out that we spend a lot of time and energy on getting a new customer,” said Gail. However, that’s only half the battle. The key is to get that new customer to return to your business. As the majority of new customers are sourced via word-of-mouth marketing from your existing customers, approximately 1% of your customer base consists of new prospects. Therefore, you should be focused on marketing to 99% of your customer base. This is engagement marketing.

Studies show that only 36% of the population trust advertising while 81% put their trust into recommendations and online opinions. Therefore, your customers’ friends are your next new patrons. You need to tap into their social networks; as such networks are extremely targeted, relevant and qualified. While this may seem complicated, the great thing about engagement marketing is that it’s a very simple, three-step cycle.

1. Step one in the engagement marketing cycle is providing a WOW! experience to your patrons.

2. Step two is to entice your customers to remain in touch with you. This can be done in a number of ways, most simply by just asking for their relevant information and offering them something of value in return, such as a discount.

3. The third step is to engage with your customers, which doesn’t need to be a complicated process. Some simple ways to engage with your patrons and bolster your online presence is to give them things to “like,” comment on, retweet and regram. Doing so will increase your visibility to your fans’ friends and networks.

Bearing in mind that the average Facebook user has 142 friends, small amounts of engagement really do have a powerful reach. Now, more than ever before, the mobile device you carry around in your pocket is your best friend when it comes to marketing. Learn to use it every day, reaching out and engaging with your customers and their networks. As Gail put it so articulately, “What happened around the water cooler now happens on social media.” Be part of the conversation.

Want more expert information on how to properly run your bar, restaurant or nightclub? Stay on top of industry trends and new product releases at the biggest on-premise operator event of the year, the Nightclub & Bar Show, celebrating 30th years March 30-April 1, 2015 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Visit www.ncbshow.com today!